Pink Clouds and Bright Yellow Shoes
by Lune-Solei
Summary: She stood in the long shadows cast by the rooftop door, pink hair curling around her temples and over her ears. She was biting her bottom lip, that the corners of her mouth were turning up in that impish smile they had all come to know and love so much.


**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of Code Lyoko, I just like to borrow the characters every now and then.

**Rating:** PG

**Warnings:** None that really stand out. Maybe slight Jeremie bashing?

**Author's Note:** This is the sequel to _Purple Frogs and Pale Green Eyes_. While you don't necessarily need to read that first, it might help. Also, both pieces are part of a much _larger_ fic I'm working on that may start to be posted sometime in the fall. Other than that, there's not much else to say.

**Dedication:** This is actually dedicated to my friend Rae who I love for her wonderful insights and caring nature. She rocks my world and I hope she knows that.

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"I thought I'd find you here."

He glanced up in mild surprise when he heard her voice. It wasn't common knowledge that he enjoyed spending evenings on the school roof, away from the hustle and bustle of crowded classrooms and overly dramatic students. Despite what others thought, he really did like silence, as long as it was comfortable. And he was alone.

"Hey Princess," he sighed, turning around fully to see her.

She stood in the long shadows cast by the rooftop door, pink hair curling around her temples and over her ears. Despite everything, he could still see the faint oval shape to the lobes, how they pointed slightly at the tips, just like in Lyoko, only minimized. He didn't need to see her face to know she was biting her bottom lip, that the corners of her mouth were turning up in that impish smile they had all come to know and love so much.

"Hi Odd."

He moved over on the makeshift bench – really it was only a couple of crates and a four-by-six that he'd had Ulrich help him move onto the roof last summer – and patted the spot next to him. Her head inclined slightly and the sun caught her eyes, turning them a brilliantly bright green. It took a moment more but she finally crossed the sunlit concrete, shoes scuffing on the tar and pebbles and he let out a soft chuckle when he saw the shoes she was wearing.

"What?"

"Who gave you your fashion advice?"

She raised an eyebrow, arms crossed and pressed firmly to her chest. He grinned up at her, watching her glare down at him, the white streaks in her hair dancing slightly as the wind picked up. His grin widened, remembering Jer's shocked face when he had presented Aelita to the group. So what if it had been slightly uncomfortable exiting the mall bathroom and seeing the surprised looks of the patrons waiting outside. The streaks had come out perfectly and in the end, he hadn't been thrown out of the store. All's well that ends well, right?

"Do you really have to ask?" she demanded, foot tapping and adding greatly to his amusement.

"Yes, yes I do."

He knew perfectly well that Jer still blamed him for some of Aelita's more…adventurous changes in wardrobe. Such as the black leather mini and spiked bracelet she'd worn last week. And the well….the boots _had_ been great, and so had shopping for them. Something she had told him Jer didn't do with her. Jer wouldn't be caught dead anywhere near a clothing store unless it was him that needed the clothing. The yellow shoes would just bring about another round of the endless battles they seemed to be having lately.

"You did you sadistic jerk," she laughed. He grinned up at her and she noticed the glint in his eyes, shaking her head. "Odd…no. _No_ Odd." It was no use though, he had already lunged and grabbed, yanking her down into his lap and tickling her mercilessly. "Odd!" she shrieked through a fit of laughter and giggles.

"I am not sadistic."

"Yes…you are."

"I won't stop until you repent on my sadistic-ness."

He watched the way her head fell back; eyes squeezed shut and hair tangling. She was scrunching herself into a ball, arms tucked in tight against her sides and legs kicking madly for him, trying to connect with an arm or rib, something. Her head was spinning from the lack of much needed oxygen and she was gasping loudly, not even laughing anymore. That was when he decided it was time to stop.

"You get off easily this time."

"Easy?" she demanded, glaring at him. She moved over, sitting on the bench and pulling her dark green sweatshirt closer to her body. Looking closer he realized that it was in fact Ulrich's jacket and he laughed, nudging her lightly with his shoulder and elbow. She rolled her eyes, shoving rainbow colored nails into the pockets. "I stopped by the dorm first," she confessed. "He's the one who told me where to find you."

"Thought so." He smirked at her and she nudged him back, stretching her legs out in the fading warmth and he leaned back, arms crossed behind his head so that he rested against the low stone wall, head resting on the top of it. "So, why were you looking for me?"

"I was looking for both of you." Her head rested on his shoulder, pink and white hair tickling his cheek and chin, jasmine enveloping them both to the point of making him want to sneeze, but it was pleasant nonetheless. "The clouds are lovely."

He grinned, chuckling quietly as he wrapped an arm around her, eyes raising to the mottled pink and orange of the clouds above. Despite everything she did, he knew that pink would always be her favorite color. He was pretty sure that she knew it too. She nudged him again, sitting up to stare at him. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing. Forget it. Why were you looking at me? Or rather, for Ulrich and me?"

She stuck her tongue out and he chuckled again, sitting up as well and shifting, staring at his own bright yellow shoes. They were scratched and scuffed, covered in dirt and the mud from the soccer field where he and Ulrich had scrimmaged against Yumi and Aelita earlier in the day, right in the middle of the afternoon storm. They had won five to four, no matter what the girls said.

"Jer sent me to find you. We're leaving soon," she murmured softly.

He glanced at her blankly and she sighed, resting her arms on her knees, adopting a pose similar to his own, staring at the pristine yellow shoes, turned a brilliant orange-gold by the fading sunlight. She had bought them yesterday at the mall, pulled them on for the first time today when her usual pink and brown sneakers got muddy in the soccer game she had played against the boys earlier. They had won, five to four, no matter what the boys said.

"Dinner Odd, remember?"

Remember? He did. Vaguely, Ulrich had mentioned it earlier but he had been distracted, not concentrating. He didn't really concentrate that much anymore though. He heaved a sigh, eyes closing as the descending sun warmed his back and made his shadow seem taller, like it belonged to a giant, not a shrimp.

"You okay Odd?"

"Yeah, I'm fine coz."

She rolled her eyes but for once she didn't mention the inaccuracy of his previous statement and he was grateful. Instead she stood and stretched languidly in the dissipating warmth before adjusting the sweatshirt once more and twisting to face him, giving him a fleeting smile and an offered hand. He took it and let her pull him up, let her lead him for the door and the stairs.

"Come on Odd, we have to get ready."

"Yeah, guess so."

"You aren't fine," she accused, spinning to face him in the stairwell. He jolted at the sudden movement and offered her a sheepish smile when she glared at him. "What is it Odd?"

"It's nothing."

"It isn't and you know it." Her voice was scathing and he shrugged, pushing past her, continuing his journey down the stairs. She followed him to the platform. "You were right when you told me you were pathetic." He stopped and she knew she had him. "You're still suffering aren't you?"

"There's nothing you can do about it."

"You're right, only you can do that Odd." She followed him, reaching out and pressing a cold hand to his cheek. "I love you Odd. You're my best friend. I hate to see you hurting like this. You have to end it. Wouldn't it be better to know?"

"Maybe. And maybe it would hurt more."

"You won't know until you try," she reminded him primly. He laughed softly, pulling her close and hugging her tightly.

"We'll see." He paused before pulling her down to sit on the stairs. "Jer?" he prompted quietly.

"What about him?"

"You two seem to be having problems lately…" Through the windows along the top of the stairwell they could see the mauve and violet clouds deepening to indigo and cobalt, awaiting nightfall. "Anything you want to talk about?"

She shrugged and the green covered arms wrapped around her legs, fingernails digging into the pink shorts. Green jacket, pink shorts, green and pink striped socks, and yellow shoes. He had influenced her more than he'd thought previously. She looked thinner than normal, most likely due to the oversized jacket, and he felt the stab of protectiveness race through him that usually accompanied their conversations.

"There's really not much to say about Jeremie that wasn't said a few weeks ago," she replied slowly.

She leaned back against the wall, feet pressed up against the low stone wall that kept students from toppling over. The fingers of her right hand reached up absently and played with the white streaks in her hair, tangling and twisting, pulling and releasing, while she studied the sky through the grungy windows.

"Come on Ai. I've spilled my problems onto you more than once, tell me?" Her eyes met his, pale and dim, like a granny smith apple that's just about to be too ripe, like the grass at the end of the summer, right before autumn comes. He reached out, hand touching her shoulder lightly. "Come on Princess, please?"

She sighed, head lolling back and eyes shifting to stare at him. His hair had come ungelled and was beginning to lose it's shape, falling into his eyes and around his ears. He offered her a smile but it didn't reach his eyes. Her eyes moved to her feet and she saw that one of her yellow shoes had a streak of mud and grime along the side, from where it had brushed against his. Surprisingly she found that she didn't mind all that much.

"He still says I've changed yet he won't listen when I tell him the exact same thing. I feel bad, I don't like feeling bad. We're not what we expected the other to be and I guess our frustrations are mounting quickly."

"I could tell. The whole science class could tell."

They hadn't started off fighting. It had actually been an enjoyable morning and he'd surprised her with a bouquet of fresh-picked lilies at her door. She had been thrilled, bubbly, excited. He had been calm, collected, happy. It was science class that got to them, arguing over a simple procedure until it escalated into yelling and Ulrich and Odd having to try and break them apart before either of them said something they'd regret. They were too late but neither genius had told them that.

"He doesn't like you."

It wasn't a shock, he had known this fact for some time previously, even before she came to Kadic, but it still stung to hear it said, especially off-handed like she just did. He wasn't sure what it was exactly that his fellow blonde didn't care about him but he had a feeling that it had something to do with clashing personalities and the fact that when it came to tests and studying he had dumb luck, even without the cheating.

He stretched, shrugging, not letting the hurt show as he glanced at the window once more. "Nothing new there Princess."

"He thinks you're trying to influence me, trying to steal me away."

He glared, feeling his fingernails dig into his palms as he made a fist. "I wouldn't do that Aelita. I would _never_ do that." He knew the feeling, had been quite intimate with it in the past, of losing someone close. He wasn't about to do it again, even if it was to Jeremie Belpois.

The clock at the center of the school tolled, joined shortly by the fading echoes of the bell tower in town, marking the hour with its somber song. He stretched, pushing himself to his feet and reaching for her hand. She took it, bottom lip once again pulled between white teeth, and he offered her a smile, tucking a strand of pink and white hair behind her ear.

"The next time he says something like that tell him I'd never try to date my cousin, okay?"

She grinned, the happiest he'd seen her in awhile and this moment was what made every trip to the factory, every late night mission and failing grade, every night of lost sleep and every missed meal worth while. She was happy here, if only for a moment, that happiness shone in her eyes and he would do anything to bring that back again.

"I'll tell him. Come on, we have to go."

"No time to change now Ai."

"No." She sighed, pulling him down the stairs. "Oh well."

He wondered if this was her intent, to get out of dressing up and just to be able to be herself. He didn't know what was wrong with Jeremie lately, why he was so uptight about what she was doing or the way she was acting. She was experiencing the world for the first time in a while, gone was the shy, naïve girl that had first entered Kadic's gates. Part of him was sad to see it go, the other though was more than happy with this new butterfly.

They exited the stairwell into the courtyard itself and saw their group of friends at the usual bench. Jeremie was sitting, laptop open on his lap and tongue clenched lightly between his teeth as he concentrated; a modified version of Aelita's nervous habit. Ulrich was leaning back against the trunk of a tree, tossing a ball up in the air and catching it as it descended before letting it fly once more, obviously bored. Yumi was the only one up, pacing back and forth in a black blur and pale shadow, blending with the deepening shades of stone behind her. He smiled, shaking his head. They were definitely an interesting group.

Ulrich glanced up as they approached, a welcome light to his eyes, and Yumi stopped pacing to smile and offer a wave of acknowledgement. They stopped and Aelita fidgeted, straightening the messy clothes and hair, pulling out a tube of lip gloss that smelled of strawberries when uncapped to smear across her lips. Odd smiled softly, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

"It's okay Aelita. People fight but he loves you. He's the one who wanted to bring you here and he did. Don't let these stupid fights get in the way, okay?"

"You make it sound so easy."

"Sometimes it is," he murmured. He adjusted a strand of her hair, knowing that his own was beyond resurrection, let alone saving. She gave him a smile in return and pulled him into a tight embrace despite her small stature.

"Thank you Odd."

"Anytime Princess." Before she could pull away he pressed his lips to her forehead, inhaling the scent of jasmine shampoo and fresh fallen rain. He stepped away, lifting her chin slightly. "Just remember to smile and not let him get to you." He could feel the eyes glowering into his back but he didn't care, he slung his arm around her shoulders, pulling her toward the group.

"He'll kill you for this," she whispered softly.

"That's okay. It made you smile."


End file.
